WEBVTT 00:00:02.319 --> 00:00:04.959 Welcome to the Celebration Church Orlando podcast. 00:00:05.280 --> 00:00:06.879 Thank you so much for listening today. 00:00:07.120 --> 00:00:09.439 We hope it encourages you and inspires you. 00:00:09.759 --> 00:00:11.279 Here's today's message. 00:00:11.759 --> 00:00:14.480 We thank you that we are your children. 00:00:15.039 --> 00:00:19.199 And as your children, God, we don't have to beg for the things that you have for us. 00:00:19.359 --> 00:00:23.839 We don't have to strive for the things that you have for us, God, but we can rest in your finished work. 00:00:24.079 --> 00:00:27.199 So Lord, I pray that this song can be the prayer of our hearts. 00:00:27.359 --> 00:00:31.199 That we have nothing to fear, God, because you defeated fear on the cross. 00:00:31.359 --> 00:00:32.399 We can rest in you. 00:00:32.560 --> 00:00:44.079 So, Father, in the name of Jesus, I pray for every person that is struggling with fear, for everyone that is struggling with anxiety or stress, God, that you begin to bring relief and allow us to experience the peace that surpasses all understanding. 00:00:44.240 --> 00:00:47.920 Because as your children, we can benefit from everything that you have for us. 00:00:48.079 --> 00:00:49.920 It's in Jesus' name that we pray. 00:00:50.159 --> 00:00:50.799 Amen. 00:00:51.200 --> 00:00:52.640 Amen and amen. 00:00:59.280 --> 00:01:00.640 Come on, let's dig a little bit deeper. 00:01:00.719 --> 00:01:06.319 Can we put our hands together for the word of God, the presence of God, and everything that he's doing here today? 00:01:06.799 --> 00:01:08.480 We are so, so glad that you're here. 00:01:08.560 --> 00:01:11.439 Thank you so much for coming to worship with us uh today. 00:01:11.599 --> 00:01:18.159 As you're taking your seats, would you mind just with a social distance safe way welcoming someone around you and welcoming them out to Celebration Church? 00:01:18.239 --> 00:01:19.519 We're so, so glad that you're here. 00:01:19.599 --> 00:01:22.959 If you're joining us online, thank you so much for worshiping with us today. 00:01:23.040 --> 00:01:25.680 We're so, so glad that you're here with us today. 00:01:25.760 --> 00:01:27.120 I'm excited today. 00:01:27.280 --> 00:01:30.560 I'm really excited about today's message and worship was incredible. 00:01:30.719 --> 00:01:35.040 In fact, can we give it up for our worship team that leads us faithfully every single week? 00:01:35.200 --> 00:01:38.239 Thank you guys so much for ushering us into the presence of God. 00:01:38.319 --> 00:01:40.799 It is such a it is such a powerful moment. 00:01:41.040 --> 00:01:45.680 If you have your Bibles, I want to invite you to join me in Daniel chapter six. 00:01:46.000 --> 00:01:48.239 Daniel chapter six. 00:01:48.480 --> 00:01:55.200 If it's your first time here, we want to welcome you and let you know that if there's anything that we could do for you and your family, please don't hesitate to let us know. 00:01:55.280 --> 00:02:00.959 I know Pastor Mike mentioned it earlier, but but you can text the word connect to 25101, and we would love to come alongside you. 00:02:01.040 --> 00:02:08.639 If you have any prayer requests or even some things that you want to share and celebrate of what God has been doing in you and through you and things that you've witnessed, please share with us. 00:02:08.719 --> 00:02:11.120 We would love to celebrate with every single one of us. 00:02:11.199 --> 00:02:14.800 We'd love to hear about the activity of God in our community. 00:02:14.960 --> 00:02:19.039 You know, today we're going to be continuing in on our exiles series. 00:02:19.199 --> 00:02:30.000 And it's really, in my opinion, been very a very timely series because it's been allowing us to really get proper perspective, perspective and recognizing that we are citizens of the kingdom of God. 00:02:30.240 --> 00:02:40.400 You know, the Bible tells us while it's important for us to pray for where we are, Jeremiah 29 instructs us to pray because as the as the world we live in thrives, so do we thrive because we're in this world. 00:02:40.560 --> 00:02:42.879 But we're not to lose sight of the fact that we're not of this world. 00:02:43.039 --> 00:02:46.800 Don't lose sight of the fact that we are called to be citizens of the kingdom of God. 00:02:46.960 --> 00:02:53.039 And some of those passages that we've been looking at over the past couple of weeks, and if you missed any of the series, I want to invite you to go back and check it out. 00:02:53.199 --> 00:03:03.520 These do build on one another, but but the one of the primary passages we've been looking at over the past couple of weeks is Philippians chapter 3, verse 20, where it says that our citizenship is in heaven. 00:03:03.680 --> 00:03:11.520 Paul is reminding us that we're citizens of the kingdom of God and for us not to be distracted by the empire or the things of this world. 00:03:11.680 --> 00:03:24.319 I think our theme scripture has been in Daniel chapter 1, verse number 8, where it simply talks about how Daniel determined that he would not defile himself with the king's food or with the wine that he drank, that Daniel knew how to draw the line. 00:03:24.400 --> 00:03:35.599 He understood that I'm in this world, I'm in this Babylonian system, but he knew how to create boundaries to ensure that he didn't lose sight of how God had called him to function and to live. 00:03:35.759 --> 00:03:44.400 So as we step into today's message in Daniel chapter six, I want to I want to give you some context as to what has happened since the last time we gathered last week. 00:03:44.560 --> 00:03:48.639 Since the last time we've gathered, we actually have seen a couple of different regime changes. 00:03:48.800 --> 00:03:55.840 That initially you've heard us talk for the past couple of weeks about Nebuchadnezzar, about Babylon, and just how oppressive and destructive that it is. 00:03:55.919 --> 00:03:57.360 And that and that very much is true. 00:03:57.520 --> 00:04:00.479 But there's another element that I believe that is subtly introduced. 00:04:00.639 --> 00:04:03.840 We last kind of hear about Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel chapter 4. 00:04:03.919 --> 00:04:05.520 That kind of concludes his journey. 00:04:05.599 --> 00:04:10.240 And then we get into Daniel chapter 5, where a new king comes on the scene, Belshazzar. 00:04:10.479 --> 00:04:12.639 He comes on the scene, and then his journey is really short. 00:04:12.719 --> 00:04:17.839 It's only one chapter, and then we actually are introduced to who we're going to hear about today, a man named Darius. 00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:20.560 But here's the thing I want you to recognize in all of this stuff. 00:04:20.720 --> 00:04:27.920 Because we're talking about Daniel and the life that he lived and how God had given him so much favor and influence and impact everywhere that he went. 00:04:28.079 --> 00:04:29.360 But did you hear what I said? 00:04:29.439 --> 00:04:36.079 That he served under Nebuchadnezzar, he served under Belshazzar, that he served under Darius, and yet he was still favored. 00:04:36.480 --> 00:04:37.360 Did you hear me? 00:04:37.519 --> 00:04:42.480 That no matter who was in leadership, Daniel still had favor because the king was still on a throne. 00:04:43.279 --> 00:04:48.639 As we're entering into a very hotly contested political season, I understand the weightiness of it. 00:04:48.800 --> 00:04:53.600 I understand the importance of us praying and seeing things put into place that we're very passionate about. 00:04:53.759 --> 00:04:58.560 But but let me say it to us plainly: it doesn't matter who's in the White House because Jesus is on the throne. 00:04:59.120 --> 00:05:00.399 Jesus is on the throne. 00:05:00.560 --> 00:05:06.160 And as long as we truly believe that as the people of God, that Jesus is on the throne, it helps us to have peace in this. 00:05:06.399 --> 00:05:10.480 The kingdom of God does not need the empire's permission to function. 00:05:11.040 --> 00:05:14.720 That the things of God are going to still move forward the way that it always had intended to be. 00:05:14.800 --> 00:05:23.279 And I believe that Daniel's life is a perfect example of what it looks like when things change, but God remains the same and we can have peace in the midst of all of that. 00:05:23.519 --> 00:05:33.839 Starting here at verse number three, it beautifully sets the tone where it says that Daniel distinguished himself above the administrators, the satraps, because he had an extraordinary spirit. 00:05:34.079 --> 00:05:36.399 Other translations said he had an excellent spirit. 00:05:36.560 --> 00:05:39.519 So the king planned to set him over the whole realm, promotion. 00:05:39.600 --> 00:05:45.600 And the administrators and the satraps therefore kept trying to find a charge against Daniel regarding the kingdom. 00:05:45.759 --> 00:05:52.160 But they could find no charge or corruption, for he was trustworthy, and no negligence or corruption was found in him. 00:05:52.319 --> 00:06:01.759 That means that even while Daniel was living in this broken world, that he still functioned with excellence, even in the context of the empire, which is a result of why he was able to get a promotion. 00:06:01.920 --> 00:06:02.720 Hear what I'm saying. 00:06:02.800 --> 00:06:05.519 It doesn't matter who your boss is, promotion comes from above. 00:06:05.680 --> 00:06:13.040 And if we can live a life that is dedicated to the kingdom, wouldn't it be great for people to say when they look at you, like, there's no false charge I can put against that person. 00:06:13.120 --> 00:06:16.560 I can gossip, I can yell all the drama, but at the end of the day, they function with excellence. 00:06:16.639 --> 00:06:18.639 There's there's no charge that I could put against them. 00:06:18.800 --> 00:06:22.560 That was literally the testimony of the people that opposed Daniel. 00:06:22.800 --> 00:06:30.160 So these men, they said, We will never find a charge against Daniel unless we find something against him concerning the law of his God. 00:06:30.319 --> 00:06:35.040 They knew so deeply that Daniel was a man of conviction that he would not compromise in his faith. 00:06:35.120 --> 00:06:41.040 They said, The only way we could trip Daniel up is if we find a way to trip him up regarding his faith. 00:06:41.199 --> 00:06:46.399 So the administrators, the satraps, went together to the king and they said to him, May King Darius live forever. 00:06:46.480 --> 00:06:56.720 All the administrators of the kingdom, the prefects, the satraps, the advisors, and the governors have all agreed that King, you should establish an ordinance and enforce an edict for thirty days. 00:06:56.879 --> 00:07:03.199 Anyone that petitions any God or man except for you, the king, shall be thrown into the lion's den. 00:07:03.360 --> 00:07:06.879 In other words, they went to the king and said, Everything needs to flow through you. 00:07:06.959 --> 00:07:12.319 And anything that doesn't flow through you, it's going to risk the opportunity for judgment and ridicule. 00:07:12.399 --> 00:07:14.480 They were elevating man above God. 00:07:14.720 --> 00:07:16.319 Everything has to flow through you, king. 00:07:16.399 --> 00:07:17.839 That's the only way it's going to function. 00:07:17.920 --> 00:07:20.800 They were playing into the king's ego. 00:07:21.439 --> 00:07:30.720 And so the king's response was like, Therefore, your majesty, let's establish this edict, this document, that the laws of the Medes and the Persian is irrevocable and it cannot be changed. 00:07:30.879 --> 00:07:34.240 So the king Darius signed the written act. 00:07:34.639 --> 00:07:38.399 When Daniel learned that the document had been signed, he went into his house. 00:07:38.639 --> 00:07:49.199 The windows in his upstairs room opened toward Jerusalem, and three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed and gave thanks to God just as he had done before. 00:07:49.680 --> 00:07:58.399 I believe we're going to look at some things in the life of Daniel to show us how he was able to function in this broken world but still thrive with kingdom excellence. 00:07:58.480 --> 00:08:02.720 And I believe it's because Daniel had a very powerful, potent prayer life. 00:08:02.879 --> 00:08:03.519 Let's pray. 00:08:03.759 --> 00:08:05.040 God, we thank you so much. 00:08:05.279 --> 00:08:06.639 We thank you for your word. 00:08:06.959 --> 00:08:10.720 We thank you for the opportunities that we have to come together to worship in your presence. 00:08:10.879 --> 00:08:21.360 Father, I pray over the next few moments that you give us open eyes that we can see you, open hearts to receive everything that you have for us, God, and open ears to hear your word as it's spoken to us. 00:08:21.519 --> 00:08:23.279 It's in Jesus' name that we pray. 00:08:23.600 --> 00:08:24.240 Amen. 00:08:24.959 --> 00:08:25.600 Amen. 00:08:26.480 --> 00:08:34.480 Many of you guys have been that have been following along with us over the past couple of weeks have kind of heard me share a little bit of our journey over the past couple of weeks. 00:08:34.559 --> 00:08:38.080 And last week we talked a little bit about what it means to be under the influence. 00:08:38.240 --> 00:08:41.279 And we've all have fallen victim of being under the influence. 00:08:41.360 --> 00:08:50.320 And I gave you this guy's this example, how I said that I would never, ever, ever buy me another iPhone because I know what Apple's trying to do by causing my iPhone to slow down. 00:08:50.399 --> 00:08:52.720 Every time a new iPhone comes out, I'm never going to do it. 00:08:52.799 --> 00:08:56.559 And then as soon as a new iPhone came out, I got me a new iPhone. 00:08:57.360 --> 00:08:59.039 We're all under the influence of something. 00:08:59.279 --> 00:09:01.679 So what do you do when you when you get a new iPhone? 00:09:01.919 --> 00:09:04.399 Well, of course, you're now trapped into this ecosystem. 00:09:04.480 --> 00:09:08.480 You're on a hamster wheel, so now I need to go get me a new iPhone case. 00:09:08.639 --> 00:09:11.519 And this is a journey that I that I honestly enjoy doing. 00:09:11.600 --> 00:09:19.279 It's been a while since I've had to go and shop for new iPhone cases because for me, iPhone cases like a it's like a relationship, it's an expression of your character and your personality. 00:09:19.360 --> 00:09:22.320 I have different cases to match different outfits and different watch bands. 00:09:22.399 --> 00:09:23.759 It's a whole thing that I have going on. 00:09:23.919 --> 00:09:30.720 So I was excited to begin this journey to find the appropriate case that I felt was a great reflection of my personality and character. 00:09:30.799 --> 00:09:36.639 I was looking online and wasn't having much success, so I went into the store to go and find me the perfect iPhone case. 00:09:36.720 --> 00:09:39.200 It was like this moment that I feel like it resonated in my soul. 00:09:39.279 --> 00:09:40.480 So I'm walking in the store. 00:09:40.559 --> 00:09:46.639 I'm walking down the aisle and I have my mask on, and there's a young lady in the aisle with me, and she has her mask on as well. 00:09:46.720 --> 00:09:48.720 And so we see each other and we kind of greet each other. 00:09:48.879 --> 00:09:54.720 And you know, nowadays that we all have masks on, it's it's so hard to tell if someone's looking at you, if someone's smiling at you. 00:09:54.799 --> 00:09:58.240 So you gotta smile extra hard so that people can see it in your eyes. 00:09:58.320 --> 00:09:58.960 It's called smise. 00:09:59.120 --> 00:10:00.000 You gotta smile with your eyes. 00:10:00.080 --> 00:10:04.879 Like people gotta see that you're happy, it's kind of like like you can't see me smiling, but you can see it in my eyes. 00:10:04.960 --> 00:10:07.279 And so we had that moment where we smised at one another. 00:10:07.360 --> 00:10:11.279 My eyes were smiling, her eyes were smiling, we greeted one another, everything was really good. 00:10:11.360 --> 00:10:16.000 And so as I'm standing in the aisle and she's kind of a couple of feet away from me, I see the perfect iPhone case. 00:10:16.080 --> 00:10:17.039 It begins to speak to me. 00:10:17.120 --> 00:10:22.480 I feel like, I feel like I don't know about y'all, but the Lord speaks to me in many ways, and one of the ways he speaks to me is whenever I can get drip. 00:10:22.639 --> 00:10:26.000 Shoes, iPhone case, those are things that I hear clearly from the Lord. 00:10:26.159 --> 00:10:28.879 I'm telling you, retail shopping is ministry in my book. 00:10:28.960 --> 00:10:32.559 So I'm I'm looking, I see this case, and I'm like, this is the one that's for me. 00:10:32.639 --> 00:10:39.679 I I I look over at her, and and and while I recognize that we're not necessarily within six feet of distance, we got our mask on, that's probably about three feet away. 00:10:39.759 --> 00:10:40.480 She's standing over there. 00:10:40.559 --> 00:10:44.639 I kind of look at her to let her know, like, hey, I'm about to go in, I'm gonna grab this case and I'm gonna get out the way. 00:10:44.720 --> 00:10:46.639 She kind of looks at me, gives me the nod of approval. 00:10:46.799 --> 00:10:49.919 I go and I grab the case, I pick it up, and I begin to examine it. 00:10:50.559 --> 00:10:57.200 The next thing that I hear was incredibly shocking because she says to me, I can't believe how inconsiderate you are. 00:10:59.679 --> 00:11:02.720 And I'm I'm thinking to myself, like, yo, like, this is this is crazy. 00:11:02.799 --> 00:11:07.200 And then the next thing she says is like, you knew that I wanted that one, and I can't believe you took it. 00:11:08.480 --> 00:11:12.879 So, like, I have this moment where I'm like, yo, like, is this my Karen moment? 00:11:13.759 --> 00:11:18.399 Like, is is this that is that is this my I've seen it, I've seen it on the internet. 00:11:18.480 --> 00:11:19.679 I've seen I've seen people go violent. 00:11:19.759 --> 00:11:23.279 Like, should I get my phone out and prepare to record this moment of when Karen's attacked? 00:11:23.360 --> 00:11:31.519 So I'm about to get my phone and I and I and I look over and I'm I'm looking at the I'm looking at the iPhone cases and I'm like, there's like 20 of the exact of the exact same cases that are there. 00:11:31.600 --> 00:11:34.320 So I I didn't understand why she was so up in arms about it. 00:11:34.399 --> 00:11:36.399 I didn't understand why she was so frustrated. 00:11:36.480 --> 00:11:49.120 So my response, because remember, I'm still I'm still a pastor in these streets, so I'm still trying to make sure I don't lose my witness, because I mean there's another side of me, the the old school Philly side of me, is like, you know, I mean, whatever, but but I'm trying, I'm trying to maintain my faith and my salvation. 00:11:49.200 --> 00:11:50.320 I don't know who's watching these cameras. 00:11:50.399 --> 00:11:54.240 They might like, oh, he's a pastor of a church, but he he took a phone from a girl and now like I don't need that. 00:11:54.320 --> 00:11:55.120 I don't need those problems. 00:11:55.200 --> 00:11:58.639 So I'm trying my best to maintain my focus, and so I just kind of glance over. 00:11:58.799 --> 00:12:01.120 I'm like, hey, like there's there's more cases there. 00:12:01.279 --> 00:12:03.200 And she looks over at me, I'm like, hey, there's more cases there. 00:12:03.279 --> 00:12:04.240 I didn't take the last one. 00:12:04.320 --> 00:12:06.480 Again, I'm I'm trying to be generous, and so she's like, what? 00:12:06.559 --> 00:12:09.679 I was like, there's there's more cases there, this isn't the last one. 00:12:09.759 --> 00:12:18.159 And then she kind of like recognizes that I'm talking to her, and she's like, oh, and then she gestures and moves her hair and shows me that she's been on a phone with someone else the entire time. 00:12:19.840 --> 00:12:22.159 It turns out she wasn't even talking to me. 00:12:22.639 --> 00:12:26.480 She she had she had on a headset, like the like the little AirPods. 00:12:26.559 --> 00:12:27.200 I didn't see it. 00:12:27.279 --> 00:12:31.440 The whole time I thought she was talking to me because she was having a full-fledged conversation. 00:12:31.679 --> 00:12:35.600 It turns out she was talking to her sister, and her sister took the last pizza pizza. 00:12:36.320 --> 00:12:39.200 How inconsiderate it was of you to take that last pizza pizza. 00:12:39.519 --> 00:12:40.639 You knew that's what I wanted. 00:12:40.720 --> 00:12:48.639 The timing of it, it couldn't be any better because she was having this full, angry, passionate conversation at the exact same moment that I took the case that she was looking at. 00:12:48.720 --> 00:12:49.679 She was so confident. 00:12:49.840 --> 00:12:57.200 And I guess I didn't consider that she could have been talking to someone else because I'm not really like a full conversation dude in public guy. 00:12:57.279 --> 00:13:00.960 You like we all like know people that are like having full conversations when they're in public. 00:13:01.039 --> 00:13:06.080 I I've never been that person like when I'm on a cell phone, that I'm just openly talking in front of everybody. 00:13:06.159 --> 00:13:09.840 Like for me, like my family and I, we were standing in line um to go voting. 00:13:09.919 --> 00:13:13.360 And while we were standing in line, there was a guy behind us, and he was having a full conversation. 00:13:13.440 --> 00:13:15.279 I mean, like a full-fledged conversation. 00:13:15.440 --> 00:13:16.799 I know everything about his family. 00:13:16.960 --> 00:13:19.519 I know about the next moves that he needs to make at his at his office. 00:13:19.600 --> 00:13:20.159 I knew everything. 00:13:20.240 --> 00:13:23.519 There was even a moment where he was talking about how he may have to let go of one of his employees. 00:13:23.600 --> 00:13:24.960 I just felt like, hey man, just give him a chance. 00:13:25.120 --> 00:13:25.759 Like, just give him another. 00:13:25.919 --> 00:13:28.559 Like, I just I just want to I wanted to intercede for the poor guy. 00:13:28.639 --> 00:13:33.440 Like he had no idea that this guy standing in line, just airing it all out in front of everybody, like, hey man, like just give him a chance. 00:13:33.519 --> 00:13:36.399 Like, you know, the pastor, pardon me, it I never have any days off. 00:13:36.559 --> 00:13:46.480 Because I find that it like for me, it's crazy when I'm like, man, like you're just having a full conversation and you don't care about what it looks because you know that you're connected and that someone's listening on the other side. 00:13:47.519 --> 00:13:59.200 It's amazing how confident we can be that even if people are looking in and they don't understand who we're talking to, but when we know that we're connected and that someone is listening on the other side, it gives us the ability to speak with boldness. 00:13:59.519 --> 00:14:11.360 You see, when I think about what it means for us to be people of prayer, more often than not, we can often feel like the people like myself who are observing people who are talking about praying and we're like, but is any is anybody actually listening? 00:14:11.519 --> 00:14:14.000 It what's what's happening on on the other side of that? 00:14:14.080 --> 00:14:23.120 But when you are a people that are knowing what it feels like to be in conversation with God, you're not concerned about how it looks because you know you're being connected and you're talking to someone on the other side. 00:14:23.519 --> 00:14:25.519 See, that's that's the power of prayer. 00:14:25.600 --> 00:14:27.600 That's the life that Daniel actually lived. 00:14:27.679 --> 00:14:35.919 He lived a life of prayer, and he wasn't concerned about other people watching him, he just knew that he was connected and that he was listening when it was listening on the other side. 00:14:36.000 --> 00:14:40.799 I believe that's what God compels and calls all of us to do, to be people that know how to pray. 00:14:41.120 --> 00:14:46.960 But if I can be honest with you, of all the different spiritual disciplines, that can often be the one that we struggle with the most. 00:14:47.279 --> 00:14:52.000 Like we we often can see the results of other disciplines that we put into practice. 00:14:52.159 --> 00:14:53.120 Like we can see the results. 00:14:53.200 --> 00:15:05.519 Like, okay, if I get up and I do my devo every single day, I read the word, I'm doing my best to put it into practice, you begin to learn things, you grow, you expand, you you begin to get a heightened awareness, there's a result that you can see almost immediately. 00:15:05.759 --> 00:15:12.799 We often we also know that if I'm if I'm generous, I understand that if I'm I'm beneficiary of people's generosity and I can also be generous. 00:15:12.960 --> 00:15:16.320 We know that we have those moments where we can see the benefit of our generosity. 00:15:16.399 --> 00:15:28.159 We we even know that when we come into environments like this and we worship, that for some that this may be our first time in service for so long, and so us being together and worship and community, we we we immediately feel filled and strengthened from that. 00:15:28.320 --> 00:15:32.000 My family and I were listening to worship music on our way to church today, and and I'm feeling it. 00:15:32.080 --> 00:15:33.440 It just immediately fills you up. 00:15:33.519 --> 00:15:34.960 We see the results of these things. 00:15:35.039 --> 00:15:39.440 However, when it comes to prayer, prayer always seems to be the outlier. 00:15:39.759 --> 00:15:42.399 Because that's the one where you're like, okay, is it is it working? 00:15:42.799 --> 00:15:43.679 Am I doing it right? 00:15:43.759 --> 00:15:45.679 What happens if I pray and I hear nothing? 00:15:45.759 --> 00:15:48.879 What happens if I pray and I don't get my prayer answered? 00:15:49.039 --> 00:15:51.519 Like, do I have to pray a certain formula? 00:15:51.759 --> 00:15:55.840 If if I don't say in Jesus' name at the end of my prayer, is God out? 00:15:56.159 --> 00:15:59.919 Like everything was going good until I until I said amen and didn't say in Jesus' name. 00:16:00.000 --> 00:16:02.480 So Jesus is like, hey man, I was with you until you didn't say my name. 00:16:02.559 --> 00:16:04.639 Like, what does it mean to be a person of prayer? 00:16:04.720 --> 00:16:06.639 What is the rhythm that I need to employ? 00:16:06.799 --> 00:16:09.840 Is there a certain methodology in order for us to do it? 00:16:10.080 --> 00:16:18.080 And while I don't think that we can necessarily answer or satisfy all of that today, I do want to give us some perspective on the power and practicality of prayer. 00:16:18.320 --> 00:16:22.639 You see, prayer is one of those things where it's ultimately it's a conversation with God. 00:16:23.039 --> 00:16:24.720 It's a conversation with God. 00:16:24.879 --> 00:16:30.559 It's it's taking the monologue that's in your mind, the monologue that's in your heart, and it's creating a dialogue with God. 00:16:31.039 --> 00:16:40.639 That's ultimately what prayer is, which means that when we look in the Bible and we see people that go to God in prayer or go to God in conversation, it can be viewed as an expression of prayer. 00:16:40.799 --> 00:16:44.879 And when you look at scripture, you see that people brought all kinds of things into the presence of God. 00:16:45.039 --> 00:16:47.600 People brought all types of conversations to Jesus. 00:16:47.759 --> 00:16:50.320 Sometimes it was a conversation that needed clarity. 00:16:50.480 --> 00:16:54.480 Sometimes it was a conversation that was meant to express fear, sometimes it was a request. 00:16:54.639 --> 00:16:57.120 Sometimes it was just inviting him into the process. 00:16:57.279 --> 00:17:04.480 What I want us to see is that when we pray, it's inviting Jesus into the conversation with us because we're having that conversation with someone. 00:17:04.799 --> 00:17:09.039 And sometimes we're having that conversation with a friend, sometimes we're having that conversation in our own minds. 00:17:09.119 --> 00:17:13.440 But what prayer does, it allows us to invite God into the conversation. 00:17:13.680 --> 00:17:18.880 You see, when we think about what are the what are some ingredients that help us to have a healthy relationship. 00:17:19.119 --> 00:17:23.680 We all could probably scream out different things, but at some point we're going to talk about communication. 00:17:24.160 --> 00:17:25.839 Why is communication so important? 00:17:26.000 --> 00:17:29.279 Because it allows us to interact, it allows us to learn and grow. 00:17:29.440 --> 00:17:35.039 This is why when people are getting to know each other, when we're in that dating season, you can sit on a phone with someone for hours. 00:17:35.200 --> 00:17:39.839 We're engaging, we're learning one another, we're exploring one another, and we're having the little fun exchange. 00:17:40.000 --> 00:17:40.880 Okay, you hang up. 00:17:41.039 --> 00:17:43.519 No, you hang up first, and you can do you can do all that stuff. 00:17:43.599 --> 00:17:44.640 I'm not sure about this audience. 00:17:44.799 --> 00:17:46.319 Like I know for Megan and I, we're a little bit older. 00:17:46.400 --> 00:17:51.359 Like we would we would fall asleep on a phone and it would you you showed your true love based on who could hold out the longest. 00:17:51.440 --> 00:17:54.480 It was like it was like a stare down, but it was a it was an expression. 00:17:54.559 --> 00:17:57.599 We're gonna just continue to communicate and see who can hold this thing out. 00:17:57.759 --> 00:18:01.359 We know that communication is so incredibly important. 00:18:02.000 --> 00:18:06.559 However, when it comes to the things of God, that can often be the place that we communicate the least. 00:18:06.799 --> 00:18:16.559 We can find ourselves talking to everyone else, but we very rarely consistently find ourselves talking to God because we don't know if it's working, we don't know the results, we don't know how that should look. 00:18:16.640 --> 00:18:18.160 And I just want to encourage some of us. 00:18:18.400 --> 00:18:19.759 It's all of the above. 00:18:20.000 --> 00:18:22.559 People have asked questions like, man, does my prayers really matter? 00:18:22.720 --> 00:18:23.279 Yes, they do. 00:18:23.359 --> 00:18:25.039 Does my prayers move the hand of God? 00:18:25.200 --> 00:18:26.640 All these things, isn't God sovereign? 00:18:26.720 --> 00:18:32.319 He's gonna do whatever he wants to do anyway, but I just want to encourage you, invite God into the conversation with you. 00:18:32.559 --> 00:18:35.200 Me and my family, we try our best to pray about everything. 00:18:35.279 --> 00:18:40.559 Not in a weird way, but some prayers are long, some prayers are short, some prayers can be more detailed, some prayers are vague. 00:18:40.640 --> 00:18:44.240 There are seasons that I've gone through, and my prayer has simply been, Lord, help. 00:18:44.400 --> 00:18:47.599 There have been other seasons I've gone through where, like, Lord, I don't have clarity on this. 00:18:47.680 --> 00:18:50.319 There's other seasons where we pray in it's a little bit more detailed. 00:18:50.559 --> 00:18:54.000 The Bible just simply says, invite God into the conversation. 00:18:54.079 --> 00:19:00.960 And I often believe that sometimes we can feel intimidated to pray because we hear someone who may have all the flowing words, all the vocabulary. 00:19:01.039 --> 00:19:05.839 There are in certain scriptures everywhere along the lines, and we can feel like I'm not, I'm not equipped to pray. 00:19:06.000 --> 00:19:10.559 And I think that that's a tool that the enemy uses to keep us from going boldly before the throne of grace. 00:19:10.720 --> 00:19:12.720 Invite God into the conversation. 00:19:12.880 --> 00:19:16.640 And whatever way it comes out, it's all about inviting God into the conversation. 00:19:16.799 --> 00:19:20.960 It takes what's going on in your head and your heart and it invites God into the process. 00:19:21.279 --> 00:19:25.519 This is why I love Daniel, because Daniel is a man of prayer. 00:19:25.680 --> 00:19:31.599 That Daniel was a person who regularly invited God into the process of everything that he faced. 00:19:31.759 --> 00:19:33.839 I want us to look at a couple of things that take place. 00:19:34.000 --> 00:19:38.799 That when Daniel is faced with resistance, the first thing that he did is he prayed. 00:19:39.680 --> 00:19:46.000 He he didn't he didn't call his friends up, he didn't he didn't text everybody that he knew. 00:19:46.319 --> 00:19:52.079 That the moment that Daniel began to face resistance, that his first response was to pray. 00:19:52.319 --> 00:20:02.319 And I believe that it's an invitation for us that no matter what you're facing, no matter what you encounter, no matter what the obstacle may be, that our first response should be prayer and not the last resort. 00:20:02.640 --> 00:20:05.039 That we should be people that take it to God first. 00:20:05.359 --> 00:20:07.519 Let's let's unpack this for for just a moment. 00:20:07.920 --> 00:20:16.160 The Bible says that that Daniel receives notification that he was not going to be allowed to pray for the next 30 days. 00:20:16.640 --> 00:20:18.240 Now that that sounds very odd. 00:20:18.400 --> 00:20:19.440 That sounds that sounds weird. 00:20:19.519 --> 00:20:22.640 So let me let me try to contextualize it in a way that it makes sense for us. 00:20:22.720 --> 00:20:27.279 In other words, it was saying that Daniel could not engage the things of God for the next 30 days. 00:20:27.519 --> 00:20:31.359 That's almost like you can never make it to church because your schedule won't allow it. 00:20:31.440 --> 00:20:36.960 That means that you're facing obstacle, things that you can imagine that allow you to worship God, those barriers are right in front of you. 00:20:37.119 --> 00:20:43.599 So Daniel hears about the fact that a law was created that was meant to keep him from praying, but he prayed anyway. 00:20:44.000 --> 00:20:45.119 Hear what I'm saying. 00:20:45.680 --> 00:20:50.079 It doesn't matter what law that they create, it doesn't matter what they did. 00:20:50.240 --> 00:20:54.480 They could take prayer out of the culture, but they can't take it out of your heart. 00:20:54.720 --> 00:20:59.359 They can they can pass whatever law that they want, but it's not going to change the way that God wants to advance his kingdom. 00:20:59.440 --> 00:21:03.039 And so what Daniel decided to do is that he went home and he prayed. 00:21:03.119 --> 00:21:07.519 He didn't go to the club, he didn't go to the bar, he went home and he prayed. 00:21:07.759 --> 00:21:12.000 In other words, Daniel said, I need to go and talk to God before I deal with man. 00:21:12.240 --> 00:21:21.279 I need to have a place where I can talk with God before I deal with man because sometimes it's so hard to hear from God when we have a live studio audience in our ears. 00:21:21.519 --> 00:21:27.200 We have so many other voices and so many other perspectives that can begin to dilute our ability to clearly hear from God. 00:21:27.359 --> 00:21:29.839 But Daniel went home and he prayed. 00:21:30.240 --> 00:21:35.200 I believe that Daniel recognized that that private prayer equals public power. 00:21:35.680 --> 00:21:39.839 That private prayer can translate into public power. 00:21:40.160 --> 00:21:43.680 Matthew chapter 6, verse number 6, Jesus is advising his followers. 00:21:43.839 --> 00:21:52.480 He says, But when you pray, go into your private room, shut the door, and pray to your father who is in secret, and your father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 00:21:52.720 --> 00:21:55.920 That private prayer equals public power. 00:21:56.079 --> 00:21:59.839 That prayer is the place where information gets turned into revelation. 00:22:00.640 --> 00:22:07.680 That when I when I got some information about whatever's going on, prayer is the place that that information gets turned into revelation. 00:22:07.839 --> 00:22:13.200 I remember my mom was an infant, she was about three months old, and the doctors had given her up to die. 00:22:13.359 --> 00:22:17.440 She actually had like this rare skin disorder, and the doctors didn't know what to do with it. 00:22:17.519 --> 00:22:23.599 And so their their recommendation for my grandfather and my grandmother is they said, just take her home and let her die. 00:22:23.759 --> 00:22:25.759 That was that was their statement to her. 00:22:25.920 --> 00:22:28.799 That was their statement to her to her mother, her father. 00:22:28.960 --> 00:22:30.880 And so now they had a decision to make. 00:22:31.039 --> 00:22:38.960 We can either receive the report from the doctors and the experts and just let it run its course, or I could actually take this home and pray about it. 00:22:39.200 --> 00:22:43.920 See, I think the reason why sometimes we don't necessarily have good homes because we're not praying in our homes. 00:22:44.000 --> 00:22:45.440 We're not bringing God into our homes. 00:22:45.599 --> 00:22:59.519 What my grandfather did is that he took my mother home and he began to recite James chapter 5, 14, where it says, If anyone is sick among you, let them call for the elders of the church and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of Jesus. 00:22:59.680 --> 00:23:07.920 In other words, instead of going home and complaining, instead of going home and being frustrated, instead of going home and exclusively being disappointed, they went home and they prayed. 00:23:08.079 --> 00:23:13.359 Spoiler alert, I'm here, which means that my mom is still here and she just celebrated her birthday two days ago. 00:23:13.519 --> 00:23:22.000 It's amazing what can happen when we begin to be people of prayer and we're praying instead of just receiving the information that the adversary sets before us. 00:23:22.160 --> 00:23:25.119 Daniel, he went home and he prayed. 00:23:25.440 --> 00:23:32.160 You know, with our new technology, whenever we go into the search feature, it'll often show us what are the things that we search for most frequently. 00:23:32.319 --> 00:23:39.839 In fact, I I've noticed that whenever I grab my phone now, it'll actually tell me, based on a time of day, that this is typically the app that you go to. 00:23:40.079 --> 00:23:47.440 It's kind of cool, a little bit scary, but nonetheless, it's cool that they know, like, hey, typically at this time of day, this is the app that you're normally engaging. 00:23:47.759 --> 00:23:49.599 First thing in the morning, you may be looking at this. 00:23:49.759 --> 00:23:54.480 You may be looking at your bank account, you may be, you may be looking at the news, you may be looking at some things. 00:23:54.640 --> 00:23:56.319 And and all that stuff is helpful. 00:23:56.480 --> 00:23:57.279 But but watch this. 00:23:57.440 --> 00:23:58.880 Let's take this a step further. 00:23:59.119 --> 00:24:03.599 What if we what if we were able to diagnosis, get a diagnosis of our soul? 00:24:03.839 --> 00:24:06.799 When we're searching for something, what's the first thing that pops up? 00:24:07.119 --> 00:24:08.240 Is it our friends? 00:24:08.480 --> 00:24:10.799 When I'm searching for answers, am I looking to social media? 00:24:10.960 --> 00:24:12.880 When I'm searching for answers, am I looking to the news? 00:24:13.039 --> 00:24:17.119 Or if I was to do inventory of my soul, the first thing that would pop up would actually be God. 00:24:17.279 --> 00:24:23.519 I believe it's an opportunity for us to reevaluate the way that we engage things and say, I'm not gonna let this information drag me down. 00:24:23.680 --> 00:24:29.440 I'm actually gonna take this information into the presence of God and allow it to turn into a revelation of how good our God is. 00:24:29.680 --> 00:24:33.119 This is what happens when you live a life of prayer. 00:24:33.279 --> 00:24:38.079 See, I recognize that prayer has the ability to change the atmosphere. 00:24:38.319 --> 00:24:38.880 It really does. 00:24:39.039 --> 00:24:40.799 It has the ability to change the atmosphere. 00:24:40.960 --> 00:24:46.160 Did you know in scripture that on multiple occasions it refers to prayer as a fragrance? 00:24:46.400 --> 00:24:47.839 It refers to prayer as a fragrance. 00:24:47.920 --> 00:24:54.480 And in Revelation chapter 8, verse number 4, it says that the smoke of the incense, which is the prayers of the saints. 00:24:54.720 --> 00:24:56.960 Psalm 141 and 2, it says this. 00:24:57.119 --> 00:25:00.640 It says, My May my prayer be set before you as incense. 00:25:00.799 --> 00:25:05.599 We see this place where prayer is often alluded as a fragrance, as incense. 00:25:05.759 --> 00:25:07.039 I mean, think about that for a moment. 00:25:07.119 --> 00:25:12.799 That's a powerful image that God wants to make sure that we capture is that prayer can be a fragrance. 00:25:12.960 --> 00:25:16.240 Because when you think about it, fragrance is a powerful thing. 00:25:16.559 --> 00:25:18.640 Fragrance communicates a whole lot. 00:25:18.960 --> 00:25:20.480 It really does set the tone. 00:25:20.640 --> 00:25:23.039 Like prayer can be a very, very powerful thing. 00:25:23.119 --> 00:25:27.599 It can be very overwhelming when we think about when we think about aroma, when we think about smells. 00:25:27.680 --> 00:25:31.920 Like we all have been in a place where you can smell the person before they show up. 00:25:32.079 --> 00:25:34.480 They went a little bit heavy on the cologne or the perfume. 00:25:34.559 --> 00:25:37.200 You can smell them before they show up, and you can certainly smell them after they go on. 00:25:37.359 --> 00:25:41.119 Like aroma has the ability to change the atmosphere completely. 00:25:41.279 --> 00:25:43.039 I remember when my son Keith Jr. 00:25:43.200 --> 00:25:48.319 he was trying to get into that age where he was in high school and he began to try to channel his inner swag. 00:25:48.400 --> 00:25:54.960 And so what he began to do is that we made the dreadful mistake of buying him axe body spray. 00:25:56.640 --> 00:26:02.960 We bought him some axe body spray, and it seemed as if he would use the entire can in a period of what like maybe two days. 00:26:03.119 --> 00:26:08.559 And so every morning around six o'clock when he was about to go to school, he would spray this entire stuff on him. 00:26:08.720 --> 00:26:16.160 Me and Megan would be in our room, sleep with the door closed, and this like the smell would work its way underneath of the, underneath the door. 00:26:16.319 --> 00:26:18.799 It would like attach itself to us, and it was like it just gets in. 00:26:18.880 --> 00:26:20.559 You ever smell something that feels like you can taste it? 00:26:20.640 --> 00:26:22.799 It's just, it's just ever it's just everywhere. 00:26:22.960 --> 00:26:25.039 Like that's how powerful aroma is. 00:26:25.119 --> 00:26:30.960 We we know those people that go a little bit strong on the aroma sometimes, but but but but continue to let's express this. 00:26:31.039 --> 00:26:42.640 I actually have a friend of mine that's a realtor, and one of the things that realtors will often do when they're trying to sell a home is they'll have other fragrances in the home in an effort that when you walk in, it can like, man, I feel a great sense of peace. 00:26:42.799 --> 00:26:44.079 I can imagine myself living here. 00:26:44.160 --> 00:26:47.119 It's it's giving you aromas that's meant to change the atmosphere. 00:26:47.200 --> 00:26:55.039 You can walk into a house that you're not even crazy about, it's okay, but when you smell certain smells that may remind you of your grandmother, that may remind you of comfort. 00:26:55.200 --> 00:26:55.920 It's like, you know what? 00:26:56.000 --> 00:27:00.640 I could see myself living here because aroma has the ability to change the atmosphere. 00:27:00.720 --> 00:27:04.720 It can change everything up whenever you get into an environment that has certain smells. 00:27:04.799 --> 00:27:06.079 We smell good food sometimes. 00:27:06.240 --> 00:27:12.240 You and you could be in the middle of a fast, and all of a sudden you can smell every single type of food there is known to man. 00:27:12.319 --> 00:27:16.720 It starts having you desiring things that you would never eat, such as Taco Bell. 00:27:16.799 --> 00:27:24.880 Um, it could it could have you it could have you stirring up and have a desire for things that you would never eat because the aroma has the ability to change the atmosphere. 00:27:25.119 --> 00:27:35.039 But I think it's interesting that when we know how powerful aroma is, how it has the ability to change and set the atmosphere, that the scripture says the same thing about when we spend time with God. 00:27:35.519 --> 00:27:42.000 What if I were to tell you that when we spend time in the presence of God or prayer, we actually walk away smelling like Jesus? 00:27:42.319 --> 00:27:47.759 That the more that I spend time in the presence of God with prayer, that I actually walk away smelling like Christ. 00:27:47.920 --> 00:27:57.039 Paul tells the Corinthian church in 2 Corinthians 2.15 that we are the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. 00:27:57.200 --> 00:28:10.480 What Paul is ultimately saying is that whenever someone lives a life of prayer, when someone lives in covenant relationship with Jesus, that it's a testimony and a rec of a point of identification for those who are saved, and it's a testimony for those who are not. 00:28:10.640 --> 00:28:13.599 In other words, it has the ability to change the atmosphere. 00:28:13.759 --> 00:28:18.960 You all know the person that when they walk into a room, they change the atmosphere because they're walking in with joy. 00:28:19.119 --> 00:28:25.279 You know the person that walks into a situation, and no matter what the negative news or what the negative report is, they have a different perspective on it. 00:28:25.440 --> 00:28:27.440 They have the ability to change the atmosphere. 00:28:27.599 --> 00:28:35.039 This is the power of prayer that when we spend time in the presence of God, we can walk into environments that other people will identify as being broken or toxic. 00:28:35.119 --> 00:28:38.240 But because I spent time with Jesus, I see it a little bit differently. 00:28:38.400 --> 00:28:39.519 I have a different perspective. 00:28:39.680 --> 00:28:42.079 I have the ability to recognize joy in the midst of this suffering. 00:28:42.319 --> 00:28:46.880 I can have peace even in the midst of chaos because I spent time in the presence of God with prayer. 00:28:47.119 --> 00:28:51.039 This is why I believe that the enemy hates when we pray. 00:28:51.200 --> 00:28:55.200 Because another thing that aroma does, aroma is connected to our memory. 00:28:55.359 --> 00:29:04.000 And I believe that whenever we pray, that it reminds the enemy of the defeat that he took over 2,000 years ago because we end up walking away smelling like Jesus. 00:29:04.240 --> 00:29:08.160 Jesus was anointed with a year's worth of wages before he died on the cross. 00:29:08.400 --> 00:29:09.119 A year's worth. 00:29:09.279 --> 00:29:11.359 I just bought some new cologne yesterday,$40. 00:29:11.839 --> 00:29:16.880 Now, imagine that multiplied for a year's worth and all that dumped on Jesus. 00:29:17.039 --> 00:29:18.240 That meant that's a lot. 00:29:18.400 --> 00:29:20.400 Everywhere Jesus went, you could smell him. 00:29:20.559 --> 00:29:23.680 That means that even when he was with his disciples, you could smell him. 00:29:23.920 --> 00:29:28.640